Overview
This guide explains how to handle contacts in Emma. Each contact is a person, and their information is stored in contact fields. For instance, the person's first name, last name, and email address are all individual pieces of information, and each is stored in its own contact field. Contacts can also be referred to as subscribers.
Logging in to Emma
- Go to https://home.e2ma.net and log in with the following credentials:
- Username: Your @usc.edu email address
- Password: The password you created during setup, which may not be the same as your USC NetID passphrase
- Click the Audience tab. When you need to edit contact-related information, you will work within this tab.
Before you begin: Setting up groups
Groups are a handy way to organize your contact list, and they make it easy to send newsletters because you can select entire groups rather than selecting individual contacts from a long list.
It may be simpler to create your groups prior to adding a list of contacts, but you can also create new groups during the contact adding process.
Here are some examples of groups you can create:
- A single group of all subscribers to your newsletter
- Multiple groups based on contact information, such as whether they are a faculty member, staff member, or student
- Multiple groups based on newsletter topics—maybe some contacts want to receive newsletters about upcoming events, others want to receive newsletters about application deadlines, and a few want to receive newsletters about events AND deadlines
You can create an unlimited number of groups, and contacts can be added to multiple groups.
Quick guide
- Click the Audience tab.
- In the left menu, click Groups.
- Click Create a group.
- Type a group name and click Create.
- The group is created and added to the list.
- (optional) Repeat steps 3–4 if you are creating more groups.
Detailed guide (with screenshots)
- Click the Audience tab.
- In the left menu, click Groups.
- Click Create a group.
- Type a group name and click Create.
- The group is created and added to the list.
- (optional) Repeat steps 3–4 if you are creating more groups.
Adding and importing contacts
If you need to add contacts manually, you can do so individually or through bulk import. Make sure that anyone you're adding has consented to receive emails from your Dornsife department or unit.
Bulk import contacts from a file
You can import a .csv (recommended), .xls, or .xlsx file. We recommend using the first row as your header row. Here's an example of how your file might be formatted:
Keep the following guidelines from Emma in mind:
Rented and purchased lists are not allowed. You can only upload a contact list if everyone on that list has either asked to receive messages from you or has had a clear relationship with your organization (as a customer, employee, or volunteer, for example) in the last 12 months. If you have contacts who were added earlier than that, you must have messaged them at some point within the last 12 months to keep them on your list.
Quick guide
- Click the Audience tab.
- Click Imports in the left menu.
- Click Import contacts.
- Click Choose file, and select the file from your computer.
- (optional) You can select a source for the import if this is information you want to make sure is recorded in Emma. If you do this, keep Update their records selected.
- Click Continue.
- Emma attempts to map the header row of your file to existing contact fields. For any fields where Ignore appears, select an existing field or click Add field.
- Click Continue.
- Select one or multiple existing groups, and click Continue.
- To add a new group to the selection choices, type a name and click Add.
- Select one or multiple existing subscriptions, or leave this selection blank. Click Continue.
- You cannot create a new subscription during the import process.
- Review the summary and click Import.
- Emma begins importing the contacts in the file. The page may not automatically update once the import is complete, so you can navigate to other pages in Emma and then return to the Audience tab to check progress.
Detailed guide (with screenshots)
- Click the Audience tab.
- Click Imports in the left menu.
- Click Import contacts.
- Click Choose file, and select the file from your computer.
- (optional) You can select a source for the import if this is information you want to make sure is recorded in Emma. If you do this, keep Update their records selected.
- Click Continue.
- Emma attempts to map the header row of your file to existing contact fields. For any fields where Ignore appears, select an existing field or click Add field.
- Click Continue.
- Select one or multiple existing groups, and click Continue.
- To add a new group to the selection choices, type a name and click Add.
- Select one or multiple existing subscriptions, or leave this selection blank. Click Continue.
- You cannot create a new subscription during the import process.
- Review the summary and click Import.
- Emma begins importing the contacts in the file. The page may not automatically update once the import is complete, so you can navigate to other pages in Emma and then return to the Audience tab to check progress.
Encourage new contacts to add themselves
To make it easy to add people as contacts in Emma, you can set up a sign up form. This allows people to directly input their own information and subscribe to your newsletter without requiring you to add them on your end:
Viewing and editing existing contacts
In addition to storing contact information such as name and email address, Emma automatically stores data related to mailing campaigns, such as the contact's open rate and click rate for all mailing campaigns as well as for individual mailing campaigns.
You can find contact information and contact history by viewing the individual's contact record:
Quick guide
- Click the Audience tab.
- The Contacts page appears. Click the contact's email address.
- If you have a long list and do not immediately see the contact, use the search bar to narrow down the list. You can search by partial or complete email address, first name, or last name.
- The contact record appears. The top of the page shows when the contact was added to Emma as well as the contact's overall statistics. By default, the Contact details tab is open and displays information about the contact. To view statistics on past mailing campaigns, click the Emails tab.
Detailed guide (with screenshots)
- Click the Audience tab.
- The Contacts page appears. Click the contact's email address.
- If you have a long list and do not immediately see the contact, use the search bar to narrow down the list. You can search by partial or complete email address, first name, or last name.
- The contact record appear. The top of the page shows when the contact was added to Emma as well as the contact's overall statistics. By default, the Contact details tab is open and displays information about the contact. To view statistics on past mailing campaigns, click the Emails tab.
Archive (remove) a contact
You can archive a contact: once you do this, the contact no longer shows up on your contact list but is still recoverable.
Archive a single contact
Click the Expand 
icon next to the contact, and select Archive.
If you have a long list and do not immediately see the contact:
Quick guide
- Use the search bar to narrow down the list. You can search by partial or complete email address, first name, or last name.
- Select the checkbox for the contact.
- Click Actions at the top and select Archive.
Detailed guide (with screenshots)
- Use the search bar to narrow down the list. You can search by partial or complete email address, first name, or last name.
- Select the checkbox for the contact.
- Click Actions at the top and select Archive.
Archive multiple contacts at once
Select the checkbox for each contact you want to archive. Click Actions at the top and select Archive.
Restore or delete an archived contact
More ways to manage contacts
Change the column display (view)
By default, only the Email field appears when you're viewing the Contacts page. To view more fields, click Column display. Select the checkbox for each field you want to view, and click Save.
View and correct contact statuses
Contacts can have one of three statuses, which you can select using the tabs at the top of the Contacts page:
Only active contacts will receive your newsletters. Emma will not send newsletters to opt-out contacts, as they have unsubscribed and can only receive your newsletters if they sign up (and thus opt in) again.
Error contacts are those who subscribed to your newsletters but are not receiving them. Emma may switch a contact's status from active to error for one of the following reasons:
- Delivery was hard bounced: A newsletter was sent to the contact but not delivered because the email address was invalid or the domain was blocked.
- Multiple deliveries in a row were soft bounced: Three newsletters in a row were sent to the contact but not delivered because the inbox was full, there was a server problem, or another temporary issue occurred.
- Formatting is incorrect: The email address needs to be corrected because, for instance, it is missing the @ symbol or there is a comma where there should be a period.
For more information, refer to the following Emma article:
Changing a contact from error to active status
You can correct a contact who is in error and then change them to active:
Quick guide
- On the Contacts page, click the contact's email address.
- Click Edit.
- Make any corrections needed to the contact. For instance, if the contact is in error due to a formatting issue, edit the Email field and then click Save.
- In the Email status field at the top, click Error and select Active.
- The contact's status is updated and the contact is now active.
Detailed guide (with screenshots)
- On the Contacts page, click the contact's email address.
- Click Edit.
- Make any corrections needed to the contact. For instance, if the contact is in error due to a formatting issue, edit the Email field and then click Save.
- In the Email status field at the top, click Error and select Active.
- The contact's status is updated and the contact is now active.
Changing a contact from opt-out to active status
You cannot change an opt-out contact's status. However, if they unsubscribed by accident, they can resubscribe by signing up for your newsletter again. For more information, refer to the following Emma article:
Export contacts
You can export your contact list as a .csv file, and you can either export all contacts or export just the contacts within a specific group.
Quick guide
To export all contacts:
- On the Contacts page, click Export.
- Select the checkboxes for the contacts you want, and click Export.
- Click View the exports page.
To export contacts from a specific group:
- In the left menu, click Groups.
- Next to the group you want to export, click the Expand icon and select Export.
- Select the checkboxes for the contacts you want, and click Export.
- Click View the exports page.
To download your exported contacts:
- In the upper right, click the Settings
icon and select Exports.
- To download a list, click the Expand
icon under Actions and select Download this export.
Detailed guide (with screenshots)
To export all contacts:
- On the Contacts page, click Export.
- Select the checkboxes for the contacts you want, and click Export.
- Click View the exports page.
To export contacts from a specific group:
- In the left menu, click Groups.
- Next to the group you want to export, click the Expand icon and select Export.
- Select the checkboxes for the contacts you want, and click Export.
- Click View the exports page.
To download your exported contacts:
- In the upper right, click the Settings icon and select Exports.
- To download a list, click the Expand icon under Actions and select Download this export.
Adding and editing contact fields
Contact fields store individual pieces of information about the contact, such as their first name, last name, and email address. You can create custom contact fields: for example, you could create a "USC School or Unit" contact field to indicate if the contact is part of USC Dornsife, USC Viterbi, or another USC school.
Add a new contact field
Quick guide
- Click the Audience tab.
- Click Contact fields in the left menu.
- Click Create contact field.
- Fill out the Field name and select a Field type. Some useful field types:
- Short answer: This is one of the most flexible fields, and can be up to 255 characters long.
- Radio button menu, dropdown menu: These fields work well if you know there will be a limited number of potential options and want to reduce the chances that a new contact will misspell information (which can occur with the short answer field).
- Checkbox menu: This field allows multiple options to be selected.
- If you selected a field type that allows you to provide pre-filled options, type each option as a separate line. On the right side, the preview area updates.
- Click Save.
- Be aware that, if you plan to use the new contact field to personalize a campaign, it may take up to 24 hours for the new contact field to appear as an option.
Detailed guide (with screenshots)
- Click the Audience tab.
- Click Contact fields in the left menu.
- Click Create contact field.
- Fill out the Field name and select a Field type. Some useful field types:
- Short answer: This is one of the most flexible fields, and can be up to 255 characters long.
- Radio button menu, dropdown menu: These fields work well if you know there will be a limited number of potential options and want to reduce the chances that a new contact will misspell information (which can occur with the short answer field).
- Checkbox menu: This field allows multiple options to be selected.
- If you selected a field type that allows you to provide pre-filled options, type each option as a separate line. On the right side, the preview area updates.
- Click Save.
- Be aware that, if you plan to use the new contact field to personalize a campaign, it may take up to 24 hours for the new contact field to appear as an option.
Edit a contact field
Click on a contact field name to edit the contact field. The lock 
icon next to certain labels such as the Field type and Shortcut name indicates that it cannot be edited.
When editing field types with option values, be aware that the option values are case sensitive. For example, "Staff" and "staff" would be treated as two separate values.
Archive (remove) a contact field
It is not possible to completely delete a contact field, but you can archive it:
Archive a contact field
Click the Expand icon and select Archive field. Once archived, the contact field appears at the bottom of the list.
Be aware that even if you archive a content field, the content field name is reserved: you cannot have multiple contact fields with the same name.
Re-add an archived contact field
Click the Expand icon and select Restore field.
